About

“Dark Side of the Rainbow”, sometimes referred to as “Dark Side of Oz” refers to the synchronization of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz with British band Pink Floyd’s 1973 album, “Dark Side of the Moon.”

Origins

Although the exact origin is not known, this phenomenon was first thought to be a discussion on a Pink Floyd usenet group in 1995. It was brought to more widespread attention by author Charles Savage in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette – “The Dark Side of the Rainbow: Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon. The film version of ‘The Wizard of Oz.’ Two profoundly successful pieces of pop art you would think are completely unrelated. Yet there exists a connection – no, really a synchronicity – between the two that escapes logic or understanding.”[1]

In the article, Savage gives directions on how to synch the film and the album, “turn off your television sound, put Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon in your CD player and press play at the exact moment the MGM lion roars for the first time.” and points out some of the more notable parallels.

Spread

On May 30, 1997, MTV.com posted an article[2] that tried to trace the origins of the phenomenon, with some people dating it back 18 years prior. In the article, Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason described the movie/album pairing as “absolute nonsense,” and said “it has nothing to do with ‘The Wizard Of Oz.’”

In 2000, Turner Classic Movies ran “The Wizard of Oz” and used “Dark Side of the Moon” to replace the audio of the original film.[3] Over the next few years, websites listing the film/album parallels started springing up. [4][5][6]